Oscars 2023: A ‘crisis team’ added to prevent controversies like Will Smith-Chris Rock slapgate

Ahead of the 95th Academy Awards, the organisers are taking all preventive measures to avoid another possible slapgate incident. They have a new ‘crisis team’ in place in response to the 2022 Oscars, where actor Will Smith walked on stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock.

During an interview with Time Magazine, Bill Kramer, CEO of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, was asked if there are any measures to avoid potential surprises. He said, ‘Absolutely. And that's why you want someone like Jimmy (Kimmel) on stage who is used to dealing with live TV. Things don't always go as planned. So you have a host in place who can really pivot and manage those moments. But we have a whole crisis team, something we've never had before, and many plans in place. We've run many scenarios. So it is our hope that we will be prepared for anything that we may not anticipate right now but that we're planning for just in case it does happen.’

Last year, Chris Rock had made a joke about Will Smith's wife-actor Jada Pinkett Smith being in ‘G.I. Jane’ because of her shaved head, which triggered ‘The Pursuit Of Happyness’ actor and he slapped him.

For the unversed, Jada suffers from a condition called alopecia.
After the slap incident, Will Smith had apologised to the Academy, the nominees and Chris Rock.

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